Royal Navy Reservist to Brewery Owner

July 4, 2018

Royal Navy Reservist Neel Singh made the bold decision to take Dorking Brewery a brand new state of the art brewery to a brand new state of the art site in late September 2017. The new location in Capel includes a 24,000-liter capacity brewery and a tap room for customers to enjoy his craft beers. Neel also signed up to be an X-Forces Ambassador for Surrey on the 18th September 2017.

Neel took over Dorking Brewery in 2016 after a start-up loan from X-Forces Enterprise, and since then his team has grown to five employees. In the last two years, they raised half a million pounds to allow the brewery to move into the new space. As the size of both the team and location expands, so is Dorking Brewery’s network. Due to X-Forces Enterprise connections, Neel receives mentoring and networking advice from NatWest allowing Dorking’s reach to expand to larger companies and buyers.

Dorking Brewery

As a reservist for the British Royal Navy, Neel is keen to support his Armed Force community. With the support of X-Forces, Dorking Brewery partnered with the Royal Navy and Royal Marines Charity. Defaulters Pale, Dorking Brewery’s new beer, was created in conjunction with the Royal Marines Charity. Over five percent of Defaulters Pale’s sales go directly to support servicemen and women. Along with the Royal Navy and Royal Marines Charity, Neel works alongside Blind Veterans U.K. One of Dorking’s newest employees is a blind veteran who will be joining the team shortly. Dorking Brewery also created a beautiful beer garden in Hampton Court where veterans can sit, relax, and enjoy a beer.

While Dorking Brewery continues to expand, Neel remains honest about some of the challenges of running a small business. While starting off as a small business was great, Dorking’s constant growth and demand for production is hard to cover with not a lot of hands.

“One of the challenges has been balancing all the bases. We need more people so that things don’t slip through the cracks and so that the company can keep expanding,” said Neel.

Despite this challenge, Neel is optimistic about the future and incredibly grateful for X-Forces Enterprise continued support. He is keen to become the X-Forces Ambassador for Surrey and is looking forward to… He urges veterans and families to seek support when coming out of the armed forces.

“Choose what support you need carefully and be aware that you need more than just money to setup a business. You need support and advice to be successful. Know that you are not alone and don’t be afraid to ask for help,” said Neel.

“It was a pleasure to meet Neel at his new site and I was really impressed with his sustainability agenda for Dorking Brewery and what he has achieved already. Watch this space we will be interviwing Neel again on his impact for the armed forces, carbon footprint and job creation”. Ren Kapur MBE, Founder and CEO, X-Forces Enterprise

If you’re considering self-employment like Neel, find out how X-Forces Enterprise can support you: http://bit.ly/2JT9yIN

X-Forces Enterprise (XFE)
Is an award-winning Community Interest Company that nurtures entrepreneurial ambition in the UK military community and are the official delivery partner to the governments Start Up loans scheme and the Careers Transition Partnership (MOD). XFE have supported over 1,300 entrepreneurs to start their own businesses and has helped thousands more through training, events and mentoring provisions. X-Forces.com

If you would like to use Neel’s business in your publication, please contact Tenneka Richards, Marketing & Communications officer, X-Forces Enterprise on tenneka@x-forces.com or +44 (0)207 811 3237